Every move, every fast break, every jump shot, every defensive stop is going to be scrutinized Friday through Sunday inside air-conditioned State Farm Stadium, where about 400 NCAA Division I college basketball coaches will have their first live look at recruits in nearly two years.

Playing for their high school teams in the Section 7 Team Camp, they’re ready to make the splash denied since the COVID-19 pandemic wiped the live recruiting scene for Division I coaches since March of last year.

They got to see them in livestream events. But it’s different when you’re up close and see them. There is body language to decipher as much as ball hawking and rebounding and scoring to evaluate.

How the players relate to their teammates and coaches in timeouts. How they play without the ball.

There are so many little things that college coaches look at before deciding whether to offer a kid a scholarship.

“It’s been freshman year in July the last time we played in front of coaches,” said Phoenix Sunnyslope senior-to-be 6-foot-8 Elijah Saunders, who helped the Vikings to the 6A title last season. “It will be nice. I think there should be a lot of coaches at our games. I talked to a lot coaches who said they’re coming. I can’t wait.”

Saunders and 2022 guard Oakland Fort are Sunnyslope players who should garner lots of attention from Division I coaches, along with many others in the state.

The Section 7 is an NCAA-sanctioned recruiting event that is run by the Arizona Basketball Coaches Association and given the approval of the Arizona Interscholastic Association. The ABCA was going to have Section 7 staged at State Farm Stadium last year, before the pandemic canceled it.

Now it is the biggest it has ever been with close to 200 high school teams participating and more Division I college coaches. Two years, when the first Section 7 was held in the Valley, a little more than 300 Division I college coaches showed up.

“It will give bigger notice and more exposure not just for our guys but everybody in the state,” Sunnyslope coach Ray Portela said. “We benefited from it a couple of years ago.

“Hopefully, this allows people to see the state of Arizona and kids from other states that last year they didn’t get.”

Phoenix Mountain Pointe 2023 guard Tru Washington, an incredible scorer who can defend and rebound, could be one of the most looked at players among the roughly 2,500 players from all over the nation, mostly California and Arizona, in the three-day showcase that will be run on 12 courts inside the Arizona Cardinals’ stadium, where an NCAA Final Four was once held.

On the first two nights, courts 1 and 12 likely will get the most traffic among coaches with the best marquee matchups. On Friday night at 8:30, on court 12, Mountain Pointe, led by Washington and guard Mark Brown, will play national powerhouse Mater Dei of Santa Ana, California.

The 6-4 Washington’s stock has dramatically risen since leading the Pride to the 6A final and nearly beating Sunnyslope in the final. He averaged 22 points, eight rebounds, 3.2 steals an 2.2 assists per game last season.

This will be the first time Washington will be seen live by Division I recruiters since he was getting ready to start his high school career.

The uncle of former AZ Compass Prep All-American TyTy Washington (who is now at Kentucky getting ready for his freshman season), Tru Washington is a lot more dynamic with the ball in his hands now than two years ago when college coaches first saw him as an incoming freshman.

Washington has received offers from Arizona State, LSU, Georgia and TCU, among others.

Gilbert Perry, which opens Friday at 7:15 p.m., on court 1 against Seattle Prep, has three players who will attract Division I coaches: 7-foot 2022 Dylan Anderson, 6-7 2023 Cody Williams and 6-7 2025 Koa Peat.

Anderson committed this spring to the University of Arizona. Williams recently picked up an offer from Texas. He’s grown seven inches since his freshman year, two inches since the end of last season.

“I was taller as a kid but I didn’t expect to grow this much,” said Williams, who is silky smooth with the ball and has the ability to score quickly inside and outside. “I was always like a guard. So as I grew I kept my guard skills.”

Perry coach Sam Duane Jr., said that Williams has developed his game every year to the point where he’s become one of the state’s most sought-after players.

“He has become more explosive finishing at the rim,” Duane said. “He shoots the ball at a high level and his ability to handle the ball and either facilitate or make plays at his height really sets him apart.”

Before he even decided which high school he was going to attend, Peat picked up offers from ASU and USC.

Peat is among seven talented athletes in his family. His brothers Andrus and Cassius won state basketball titles at Tempe Corona del Sol when  was the coach there. This could be Duane’s best team since he’s been leading Perry’s basketball program.

“It’s a great opportunity to be able to play in front of college coaches,” Peat said.

Phoenix St. Mary’s opens Friday at 6 p.m., on court 2 against Harvard-Westlake out of California. The Knights’ wing Garrison Phelps (2022), guards Jason Fontenet Jr. (2023) and Styles Phipps (2024), along with center Jeremiah Cherry (2022), will all draw Division I college interest during Section 7. They’ve all been offered Division I scholarships.

“I’m very excited to have them come watch me,” said Cherry, who is 6-10, 255 pounds.

Phelps said it feels amazing to be able to get out and play in front of so many college coaches this weekend.

“It’s the same team,” Phelps said of the Knights, who won the 4A championship last season under coach Damin Lopez. “We all know each other. We all built that chemistry from last year. And we’re going to keep it going, try to make strides to back to where we were last year.”

To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at [email protected] or 602-316-8827. Follow him on Twitter @azc_obert.

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